Former Gov. Charlie Crist is getting a lot of media play for formally completing his conversion from Republican to Democrat on Thursday in Tampa.

But reaction to his comments from Thursday that he regrets signing an anti-gay marriage petition while running for governor in 2006 could be a strong indicator that his transformation won’t be smooth sailing if his ultimate goal is a return to the taxpayer’s Tallahassee home as governor.

“Dennis Godfrey: Michael, the man is a politician which means by its very nature, he's an opportunist. There are true public servants WHICH ARE FEW ... and then there are politicians. We all know he's the latter. This should come as no surprise to anyone who's switched on,” Dailiy Kos reported.

Other activists’ comments per Daily Kos:

“Wayne Dansbury: Like Rhett Butler 'I hate waste!' With that in mind, let's send 'Goodtime Charlie' back to school. Let him run for a state office -- say state representative.

“Pamela Kissinger: He didn't "come out" ... he just changed coats, for he thinks a better opportunity. Wolf, is a Wolf, is a Wolf. Like him, I do not."

Daily Kos also opened its coverage with this biting remark:

“Look who crawled out of the swamp of Florida Republican politics and tried to wipe the Christian evangelical mud off of him with some conveniently timed alligator tears!”

A more expected reaction was given by the Republican Party of Florida, which continued its “Two Faces of Charlie Crist” attack series of the potential 2014 gubernatorial candidate.

"Charlatan Charlie is falling all over himself to unwind his deeply-held positions of more than two decades," RPOF Chairman Lenny Curry stated in a release. "Nobody should take this guy seriously anymore."